[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1999, Book I)]
[May 1, 1999]
[Pages 667-668]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



[[Page 667]]


The President's Radio Address
May 1, 1999

    Good morning. Today I want to talk to you about one of the most 
important steps we can take to clean the air we breathe and protect the 
health of all Americans.
    Over the past generation, our Nation has made enormous progress in 
improving the quality of our air. In the late 1960's carbon monoxide, 
lead, and smog levels were so high in several major cities that walking 
to school in the morning could be almost as harmful for young children 
as smoking cigarettes.
    Today, people are breathing easier all across our country. Thanks to 
engineering breakthroughs and bipartisan environmental stewardship over 
the past three decades, we have reduced the annual emissions of harmful 
pollutants by a remarkable 70 million tons.
    Over the past 6 years alone, even as our Nation has produced the 
most dynamic economy in a generation, we have improved air quality in 
every single State. We've reduced toxic air pollution from chemical 
plants by 90 percent. We've set the toughest standards in decades for 
smog and soot, which will prevent millions of cases of childhood asthma. 
Just last week the Vice President announced a new effort to clear the 
haze and restore pristine skies to our national parks. But we must do 
more.
    Americans love to drive, and we're driving more than ever. But the 
emissions from our cars, particularly from the larger, less efficient 
vehicles, threaten to erode many of the air quality gains America has 
achieved. As a result, many of our States and cities are no longer on 
course to meet our vital air quality goals.
    So last year EPA Administrator Carol Browner sat down with members of the oil and auto industries, 
environmental and public health groups, and State and local governments 
to study how we can stay on track. The level of cooperation was 
unprecedented, and so was the result.
    Today I am proud to announce the details of this EPA proposal. The 
proposal would achieve a dramatic reduction in air pollution for the 
21st century, and it would do so in the most cost effective and flexible 
ways. For the first time, we would require all passenger vehicles, 
including the popular sport utility vehicles, to meet the same tough 
pollution standards. And for the first time, our plan addresses not only 
the cars we drive but also the fuel they use. Because sulfur clogs and 
impairs antipollution devices, we're proposing to cut the sulfur content 
of gasoline by about 90 percent over the next 5 years.
    Beginning in the year 2004, manufacturers would start producing 
vehicles that are 75 to 95 percent cleaner than those rolling off the 
assembly lines today. And the health benefits would be enormous. Every 
year we can prevent thousands of premature deaths, tens of thousands of 
cases of respiratory illness, and hundreds of thousands of lost work 
days. According to some estimates, the benefits of the proposal may 
outweigh the costs by as much as 4 to 1.
    In designing this proposal, we've taken great pains to make sure 
these new standards will not cause hardship for industry or reduce 
consumer choice. In many cases, existing technology will allow 
manufacturers to meet the new standards and still offer the same models 
popular with consumers today. To accommodate manufacturers of sport 
utility vehicles and others who face special challenges, our proposal 
provides extra time to meet the new standards.
    We will spend the next several months getting comments and 
suggestions on the plan. Now that the EPA has published its proposal, a 
60-day period of public comment and public hearings will begin. With the 
help of interested citizens, industry, and public health and other 
groups, we believe we can finalize this proposal by the end of the year.
    Ever since the days when thick smog was choking our major cities, 
pessimists have claimed that protecting the environment and 
strengthening the economy were incompatible goals. But today, our 
economy is the strongest in a generation, and our environment is the 
cleanest in a generation. Whether the issue was deadly pesticides, 
fouled rivers, or polluted air, the American people have always proved 
the pessimists wrong.
    With the EPA's new clean air proposal, we will prove them wrong once 
again. Not only will we enhance our long-term prosperity, we

[[Page 668]]

will ensure that our children inherit a living, breathing Earth, our 
most important obligation of all.
    Thanks for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 5:49 p.m. on April 30 in the Oval 
Office at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on May 1. The 
transcript was made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on 
April 30 but was embargoed for release until the broadcast.